Caroline Knightly, Features Editor
If you’re reading this now, you obviously haven’t been to this year’s Junior Prom yet. Upon the arrival of May comes Prom, with wonders of what it is going to be like at the Stamford Marriott. How will this year’s prom differ from last year’s?
When Principal William Egan met with juniors on March 3 to inform the grade that the original date for junior prom conflicted with the first night of Passover and needed to be changed to May 13, his announcement was met with a lot of skepticism, and maybe even some panic. But I thought, “Thank God.”
When the shocking news of the new date spread quickly, students began to question the decision of the student council and administration. Some wondered if it was necessary to make a change that affects the entire class of 2017 when only a small portion of the class was directly affected by the original date. To answer them: yes it is.
Although no date fits everyone’s schedule perfectly, after talking with William Doyle, math teacher and Junior Student Coalition Advisor, it became clear that this was the last and best option in regards to pleasing the majority’s needs. “Mr. Rothman must have gone through the calendar probably four or five times and kept coming back with possibilities of the new date,” Mr. Doyle said.
After talking to 35 juniors, 25 thought that the May 13th date was better in all aspects. This year, it won’t snow during pre-prom and girls won’t have to shiver in their sleeveless dresses. Wouldn’t you rather enjoy the warm weather in your gown than have to constantly be running inside or forcing a smile while you freeze to death? I know I would, without a doubt.
Some juniors can’t stand the idea of prom being almost a month later than the original date, while others are beyond excited. But what about the seniors? Has anyone else wondered, besides me, how they might feel that us juniors are taking their spot at the Stamford Marriott? Every year, the tradition at NCHS is the juniors get to enjoy their first prom being cramped into the Italian Center while the seniors get to enjoy their last moments together as a graduating class and explore the extravagant Marriott.
For the seniors, having prom at the Stamford Marriott is almost like a reward for surviving the last four years at NCHS. They have seniority, everyone knows that. However, now they have to share this experience with the graduating class of 2017. Not to mention both proms are exactly one week apart. Will this be too much for the faculty and students of NCHS? What about the students that have to go to two proms in one week? After talking with Mr. Doyle, he agrees that this isn’t the typical prom schedule that the student coalition hoped for, however it shouldn’t be a problem. “Traditionally, Junior Prom is the second to last weekend of April because we try to keep a one month gap between Junior and Senior Prom,” he said. “But, I don’t think there will be a conflict with having the proms so close.”
Regardless, I think it’s inevitable that all of us juniors will enjoy our first prom. Yes, it’s unfortunate that some students face challenges like a sibling’s graduation the next morning or a sports curfew, but although they might be inconvenienced, they are in no way being excluded from attending the prom.
